


Deeper Than We Thought

by NervousAliceCurious



Series: Escape the Night Fandom-Season 3: Meta-World Corruption [4]
Category: Escape the Night (Web Series)
Genre: Christmas adventure, Detox Chamber, Gen, Ill Omens, Immortal Flowers, Interrupted Birthday, Paranoia, Picks up right where Chapter 28 of DTRH left off..., Safety Bonds, Secret Base, The Wicker Man-Artifact, self-deprecation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-09-20 10:24:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 23
Words: 6,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17020905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NervousAliceCurious/pseuds/NervousAliceCurious
Summary: Faced with the possibility of being murdered by a witch before Christmas. What a wonderful way to end the year...





	1. Stuck Together

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ETNMystic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ETNMystic/gifts).



> WARNING!! SPOILERS for 'Down the Rabbit Hole'!!!!!

     After the light show  melted from my vision like water, I found myself standing in my room on wobbling legs.

 

My Alice-dress was beginning to rot off me, and I stumbled over to the laundry basket in a panic!

 

My mom would be here any second, so I needed to change my clothes-and fast!!

 

Afterwards, I got a text from her on my phone saying:

_Where’d you go!?_

_I stopped by your room earlier, and you weren’t there..._

 

I quickly replied:

 

_Sorry, I was in the bathroom taking a shower. I’m back now, though. I’ll be out in a couple minutes!_

I then spent the next twenty minutes rushing around in a frenzy stuffing things in my backpack, and in my overnight bag...

 

I didn’t notice the inconspicuous plant resting on my desk until I nearly smacked my forehead off of its low branches.

 

_What the...?_

Rising to my feet, I picked it up-

 

And  _immediately_ dropped it.

 

_“Ow!”_

 

My arms stung...and my legs stung.

Rolling up my sleeves to see what I’d managed to scrape throughout this whole ordeal, I was met with an unbelievable sight:

 

Green shoots with fuschia bulbs on the ends poking out of my veins!

 

As I watched, the pricking sensation became an agonizing _pop!_

 

They had unfurled into real-life flowers!!

 

_Wha-Huh!?_

_She’s going to hate me._

 

Before everything had blown up in our faces, I’d used what was left of my power to send some of it into her bloodstream.

I didn’t know what it would do to her, but I hoped-

 

...

 

_She’s **really** going to hate me!_

 

_What on **earth** is this!?_

 

A sweet, yet calming scent hit my nose.

 

It didn’t take a rocket scientist for me to realize that it was coming from the flowers.

 

_This is **so** creepy-!_

I mean yeah, they looked and smelled nice, but still!

 

 

...She must not know I’m here.

 

That had to be the only explanation for why she hadn’t clobbered me yet.

 

I didn’t know how she could miss me in all my _black_ apparel, but...

I reached out and poked her in the shoulder.

 

...

 

Never, before this day, had I ever seen someone jump high enough to leave a _dent_ in the ceiling.

 

 

“---!”

 

HE EXISTS!!!???

 

“Yes, I exist”.

He looked at me oddly.

“Why are you staring at me like that? You’d think you would be used to this by now...”

 

I got another text:

 

_Okay. We’ll be right up._

 

_Okay!_ I typed out, my mind going a thousand miles a minute.

 

“Uh...my mom’s coming...how  _long have you been standing there!?_ ”

 

“As long as you’ve been awake-“

 

He saw my expression, and blanched a paler-shade of white.

 

“I swear on my Mother’s Grave I did not watch you get dressed!!”

 

“...GOOD”.

 

(Mini-sigh of _thankgoodnessthatdidnothappenlikeitdidinalltheanimes!!!!_ )

 

Then something occurred to me.

 

“How are you here, though?”

 

He thought for a minute.

 

“I would assume it’s because you and I were touching when the corruption was ripped out”.

 

He then coughed.

 

“Or, it also could be...the fact that I let a bit of my  _special ability_...flow in through your wounds...”

 

I was gobsmacked.

 

“ _WHAT!? Why would you do that!?_ ”

 

“They're harmless camellias-their aroma should keep Lilith’s hypnotic influence at bay...as long as you don’t stray too far from me”.

 

...

 

“WHAT!!”

 

At that moment.

 

Another text:

 

_Coming up the stairs, now..._

_Nooo!!!_ my brain screamed.

 

This was insane!!

 

“Oh no, oh no...!!”

 

“Your mother’s coming?”

 

“Yes-how do you know all these things!?”

 

“ _I_ don’t know them. The plants do! Besides”, he continued, huffing “What else was I supposed to do? _Not_ wonder what was going on after you were away for so long!?”

 

“You’ve been talking to the trees at school!?”

 

“I wanted to know what had you spiraling down in my direction-!”

 

“-We’ll have to continue this later!”

 

I was out the door with all my stuff on, carrying everything I would need over the weekend plus one plant.

 

 

The _second_ the door closed, I felt apprehension swirl in my stomach.

 

Something in my chest snapped, and a familiar pain began to collect in my limbs.

 

_No._

 

I could feel my feet sinking into the floor...

 

I looked down at my hands.

 

_NO._

 

They were fading out...

 

_I_ was fading out.

 

My breath shallowed with fear!

 

Was I... _leaving_ this world?

 

Did the abyss _still_ have its claws in me even though...!?

 

I tried to call out, but my voice was _gone_.

 

 

“Are you ready to go?”

 

“Yeah”, I answered cheerfully.

 

_Hallucinations! Thank every holy figure in existence!!_

 

I would have been an absolute _wreck_ if the Queen of Hearts really _had_ peeled out of my mom!

 

“You’ve got enough clothes, your key, your keycard...your  _water bottle?_ ”

 

_Nope._

 

I was almost completely transparent.

 

The weight of the endless dark was already pressing down on me, and I-

 

And I-didn't know if my sanity could take it-again...

 

 

The door opened.

 

 

A pair of bony arms closed around me in a terrified hug and _yanked_.

 

 Light seared my retinas and  _exploded_ through my veins-

 

A  _fire_ ignited in my heart-

 

 

"I guess you won't be able to stray from me, either".


	2. Like It Or Not...Here We Are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life goes on, even when it's too hectic to be real.

 

_9:30 A.M._

 

“We’re doing _what_ today?”.

 

“Archery”.

 

I slid on my hat and mittens, smiling at the confusion on his face.

“It’s basically shooting stuff with bows and arrows”.

 

He raised an eyebrow.

 

“Are you _certain_ that there is no getting out of this?”

 

I grabbed the door handle, and prepared to step outside.

“Pretty much. I agreed to do it at the start of last week, _before_ all this craziness came down on our heads”.

I swung it wide, and frowned at the gray sky.

“I’ve also got no proof that any of it really happened except for you and the flowers-”.

 

“-Which no one can see”.

 

“Yup”.

 

“...So that’s why your mother didn’t object to me crashing by your bedside”.

 

“Yeah”.

 

 

_10:15 P.M._

 

"Is that yours?"

 

"No, that's my brother's".

 

"It's...interesting".

 

He tapped on the metal.

 

_clink! clink!_

 

"Why does he keep it locked up like this?"

 

I look over to where him and mom are chatting with the trailer guy.

 

"There isn't any room for it in our driveway".

 

 

_12:35 P.M._

 

It was a miracle that elbow of hers didn’t end up in my eye!

 

The snap-back on those things...

 

If I weren’t forced to follow her up and down the range like a fearful puppy, I would be out in the car waiting for this madness to end!

 

I’m just grateful that only _she_ can see me constantly having to duck at the last minute.

 

_2:50 P.M._

 

“I saved you some pizza”.

 

He stops shifting around uncomfortably, and gives me that same look from earlier.

 

Clearly,

 

He has no idea what I’m talking about.

 

“Pizza...?”

 

“It’s a super-yummy food!” I explain, “Have you never had it before?”

 

“Apparently not”.

 

_2:51_

 

She lets me pick which flavor.

 

_2:59_

 

...Cheese is my new favorite.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 1st, 2018.
> 
> End.


	3. Out of Sight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ...

**_This_** _is Alice?_

_..._

_She’s nothing but a child!_

 

An image of a pathetic waif in a yellow beret, and emerald coat flashes across my mind, and I smirk.

 

_This one’s just as goody-two-shoes as **her**!_

 

I watch as the kid enters the building and disappears.

 

Golden sparks swirl in my hand until the Wicker Man is fully charged.

 

_..._

 

_Let's see how well the little muffin can stand up to **me**..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wave 3
> 
> Dec. 2nd, 2018.
> 
> End.


	4. For You, And You Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Santa's come early, apparently...

“Look at that. You have an admirer”.

 

After coming back from an exhausting day of classes, I couldn’t help but feel a bit cheered up by the gift-wrapped kick-knack on my bunk.

 

“Naw, that can’t be it...”

 

I climbed up the built-in ladder, made myself comfortable, and began to search it for a card.

 

“I don’t know anybody well enough for that”.

 

 

Not finding one, I tore into the festive wrapping.

 

“Anything interesting?”

 

I got ahold of something suspiciously stick-like, and pulled it free with a _rrip!_

 

“Oh...”

 

The shock in my tone must have showed on my face.

 

“What? What is it!?”

 

I held it out for him to see.

 

“It’s a Wicker Man...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 3rd, 2018.
> 
> End.


	5. Next Steps?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is definitely an ill omen...

“So. What you’re saying is that there are three witches who live in Everlock: Sandra, Debra, and Belle. They’re nasty, spiteful creatures, and _that_ is their symbol?”

 

I nod.

 

“Yup”.

 

 

The skull-faced totem was sitting on my desk, all innocent-like.

 

You wouldn’t have known that that’s what it was, though.

 

I’d had to stuff it deep inside my tissue box so that my roommate wouldn’t ask any questions.

 

A.) I wouldn’t have been able to answer them,

 

And B.) I was concerned that whichever one of them had left this for me might find her a good target if I did.

 

 

“...What do you suggest we do with it?”

 

I bit my lip.

 

“In the other world, nobody did anything with it. It was just something that they had to purify”.

 

“’Purify’?”

 

“It’s a long story...Do you want to watch it for yourself?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 4th, 2018.
> 
> End.


	6. Waiting...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finals Week goes on...

“...You seem stressed”.

 

It took me a minute to realize that Envy had said something.

 

“Well, yeah. I’ve got two papers coming up, and a group presentation to complete”.

 

I waved a pencil in the air as I spoke.

 

“Not to mention a third picture to draw and color for art class...”

 

 

“I am very grateful that I do not go to your school”.

 

 

About an hour later, he looked at the clock, and then back at me.

 

“You  _do_ plan on sleeping this evening?”

 

_11:00_ _P.M._

 

I sighed, and then started to clean up my massive pile of papers.

 

“I’m gonna try”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 5th, 2018.
> 
> End.


	7. Watching

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Witch's plan is put into motion.

_Alright you..._

 

_How close to madness are you?_

 

I stood over her sleeping form, waving a glowing wand in a circle over her head.

 

When the revolution was complete, the girl’s body flashed gold, and the whole of the Alice affair was shown in my mind’s eye.

 

 

_I see._

 

_It was almost a success, then._

 

Gently drawing back the covers, I slid down the soon-to-be victim’s sleeve.

 

The pink flowers of that meddling other glowed in the dark with an unearthly light.

 

_..._

 

A wicked smile bloomed across my lips.

 

_...Come tomorrow evening, your bond will be no more._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 6th, 2018.
> 
> End.


	8. Well-Kept Secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An attempt to bring back the Alice Madness doesn't go as planned.

“My legs are killing me!”

 

The two of us had just returned from an interesting evening dinner with my roommate and her friends.

 

“You didn’t have to stand up the whole time”.

 

“I couldn’t exactly pull up a chair without making them think the place was haunted”.

 

I almost laughed.

 

“That’s a good point”.

 

-

 

_I never thought I’d **thank** a human for anything, but if that other kid hadn’t left the door unlocked..._

 

I would have had to resort to force to get in.

 

And what would be the fun in giving them fair warning?

 

 

Look at her.

 

Sleeping so peacefully...

 

_Ugh._

 

_Give me a break!_

 

 

I reach out and draw back the covers without making a sound, just like last time.

 

But, tonight...

 

With a snap, my fingertips erupt into miniature fireballs.

 

_Those cute, little buds are going to **burn**._

 

 

I brush them lightly over her arm.

 

Smoke coils off of each plant as they are singed to a crisp.

 

_At last!_

 

_I hope you’ve enjoyed your short-lived vacation!_

 

_The Cursed God sees all, and forgets **nothing**..._

 

**_Wait._ **

 

 

What is  ** _this!?_**

 

_No, **no**!!_

 

 

_They should be **dying** not..._

 

I glare down at the insolent things as they spout magenta sparkles, and their shriveled, black husks brightens once more into _pink, healthy blooms_.

 

**_Surviving._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 7th, 2018.
> 
> End.


	9. Lisa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Whose are you, really?

9:

“So, what’s the deal with Lisa?”

 

I poked one velvet bud with my fingertip.

 

“Is she a birthday present?”

 

The fey leaned in to get a closer look, his dark hair falling into his face.

 

“It’s not from me, if that’s what you’re asking...”

 

I blinked in surprise.

 

“Really?”

 

He was the only one I knew who might have left it there all those days ago.

 

“I thought this was yours-like, an extra-safeguard against the hallucinations or something like that”.

 

“I’m afraid not”.

 

My heart skipped a beat as I realized that someone had to have been in here besides my roommate.

 

“Well if you didn’t put it here when we came back from the abyss, then who did?”

 

-

 

Yeah, I left a wire in her room.

 

It’s not something I’m proud of, but it had to be done.

 

After that last time...

 

She’ll be on the Resistance’s radar now, for sure.

 

But someone’s gotta make certain that the two of them are still in one piece until they get here.

 

And that someone is me.

 

Joey Graceffa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Too bad I couldn't get this out until eleven days after. *sigh* Maybe next year...


	10. In Search of A Loophole

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone's going to end up with a target on their back.

 

_What is it?_

 

**_What is it!?_ **

 

I stalk in circles around the church lectern, thinking.

 

_What is the key to destroying those plants!?_

 

Burning them outright flopped spectacularly.

 

And so will anything else I could possibly do to them if I can’t figure this out!

...

 

Wait...

 

My mind flashes back to what I saw during the Alice visions.

 

_That elf-like creature was able to successfully free her from the Madness with the wretched things._

 

...I wonder where he is right now?


	11. Party Crasher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Exactly what it says on the tin.

“Happy birthday to you,

 

Happy birthday to you!

 

Happy birthday dear, 

 

Happy birthday to _you!!_ ”

 

 

I had to admit...

 

That cake looked delicious.

 

Unfortunately, sneaking a piece of it for myself was out of the question; I had no desire to accidentally trigger a heart-attack in either one of her grandparents.

 

She must have been thinking the same thing, because I saw her eyes flick from the candy-colored dessert to me and back again.

 

_I appreciate the thought, but I'd better abstain._

 

 

While they were eating, a section of the far wall appeared... _blurry_ to me.

 

I chalked it up to dust particles being disturbed by the sunlight outdoors.

 

Nothing worth worrying about...

 

 

Until I realized that the blur was coming closer.

 

 

“ _Alice-!_ ”

 

I saw her nearly choke on her fork, and I felt a pang of guilt for accidentally scaring her.

 

But this was serious.

 

 

I thrust out a hand, and the earth beneath the house responded to my silent plea.

 

Plants of various species burst through the tiled floor, and attempted to bind the approaching figure.

 

“ _What is happening!?”_

 

_“Oh, this is **weird**!!”_

 

_“They’re everywhere-“_

“Can you get your family out of here?”

 

She gave me a look like I was nuts.

 

And that was when a horned fury dropped the disguise, and zapped me in the chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just realized that there's only a week until Christmas. Where on earth did the time go!?


	12. Transported

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A visit to a very familiar place is in order...

**_Come on._ **

 

_Plants?_

_Really!?_

 

This guy was obviously just an amateur if creating a bunch of seedlings was the best he could do.

 

It takes me _zero_ effort to dodge every single reaching limb.

 

I whip out my wand, and affect him with my curse faster than he can _blink_.

 

 

It didn’t hurt.

 

It was mainly just a flash of light.

 

But...

 

The world around me began to flicker in and out of focus.

 

I had to squeeze my eyes shut-

 

When I opened them again, I was standing in a church.

 

A shattered prison of amber lay in the center, there were bloodstains in the far corner, and at my feet, an intricate pentagram took up most of the floorspace.

 

_Where is this...?_

 

 

“You really are fading away”.

 

The voice that had come from nowhere sounded pleasantly surprised.

 

“Guess I’ll have to make this quick”.

 

The pentagram glowed, and a sudden plume of golden flire erupted from it.

 

I regret to say that I flinched.

 

“Look closely”.

 

Other colors spiraled into the flames, intermingling with each other until they formed a cohesive image:

 

 

Alice, in bed, one arm exposed.

 

 

“You’ve been in her room!”

 

“So have you, Pretty Boy”.

 

I ignored her veiled innuendo, and got straight to the heart of the matter:

 

“What do you want?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 8th, 2018-Continued...


	13. Never Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We'll resist to the end. Because that's all we can do.

“What do I want...”

 

The image zoomed in on the flowers blooming from her arm.

 

“I WANT THESE GONE!!”

 

The fire exploded out of the pentagram and moved to surround me!

 

“And I know that _you_ know how to successfully kill them!”

 

“You’re wasting your time-“

 

“-You’ll  _never_ tell?”

 

“You took the words right out of my mouth”.

 

I had to shout to be heard over the crackling flames.

 

 

“Then you will stay here _for the rest of your life_ ”.

 

 

His shadow was a black, horned thing with red eyes.

 

It leached the color right out of him in ten seconds flat!

 

Thank goodness those plants were there to distract everybody, or else I would have had to lie my way out of grabbing at nothing.

 

_Envy, where are you..._

All I could see now was a faint outline.

 

I didn’t know why this time was different from the other one, but...

 

_Come on...You can’t just disappear! I need you!!_

 

_That **witch**._

 

If the smoke and flames didn’t kill me first, the fading would kick in and erase me from existence!

 

Already I could feel the heat searing into my skin...

 

_How do I get out of here!?_

 

Soon, my arms began to ache.

 

I looked down at them, and realized that _they were on fire-!!_

 

The flowers were being burnt to a crisp, and when I tried to stand up and get to the nearest sink, I felt a _different_ pair of arms grab me in a hug.

 

 

A hug with zero intention of letting me pass.

 

 

_Not on my watch, darling_.

 

The invisible woman’s grip grew stronger.

 

_This time, no ‘bond’ will get in my way!_

 

The world spun and shifted as the plants died, _psychedelic colors flashing around me with the **faces of all those I**_ **had met on that one fateful day-**

 

 

**I turned around, and, with the _last of my awareness, shoved my arms_** _as deep into the spongy surface_ of the cake as they could possibly go.

 

 

_Think, **think!!**_

 

_You **cannot** die here!_

 

This church...

 

How much free greenery is it sitting on right now?

 

_I don’t know, but at this point..._

 

**_I’ll take what I can get._ **

 

 

I crouched down, and pressed a palm to its dirt flooring.

 

Energy poured out of me in waves.

 

My adrenaline, my fear, my need to escape to the present...

 

Everything I was feeling at that moment went into the ground at its fullest intensity.

 

 

She may have _decided_ to keep me here indefinitely, but if this worked-

 

 

I was going to make her regret it.

 

 

_That little..._

 

I now understand why the Master didn’t waste time trying to brainwash her with a few measly parasites.

 

The brat is entirely _too_ resourceful for her own good!

 

I am all set and ready to zap _her_ off to Everlock as well when-

 

 

_Pain_ erupts in my skull.

 

 

I can feel something coiling behind my eyelids, around my brain...

 

I fight to hold up the telepathic link between this reality, _that_ reality, and myself but those agonizing shoots are reaching into my throat and I can’t breathe

 

 

Grass, and shrubs, and even a full-grown tree or two rip their way out of the thick earth, and crunch through the peaked ceiling.

 

They strain and push against the walls until they collapse.

 

And I sit at the center of them all, intending to continue doing this for as long as is necessary.

 

 

Even though the fire creeps up the branches, and feeds off of the leaves...

 

 

It’s dying.

 

 

The image in the pentagram dissolves into nothing.

 

The room grows dark.

 

 

He faded back in, and I couldn’t have been more happy to see him.

 

“She’s there! Right in front of you!!”

 

His eyes lock with mine.

 

“Are you ready?”

 

I grab his hand in answer, a long-dormant light igniting to life in my chest.

 

 

We don’t even think it.

 

 

We just do.

 

 

A combination of photosynthesized white light, and pale-green, starry supernova roars across the room.

 

The witch, eyes widening with horror, raises her wand to protect herself.

 

 

But she's too slow, movements hampered by the abuse Envy's plants have wreaked upon her very being.

 

 

The last thing she sees is a beautiful column of death.

 

 

When the dust finally settles, all that's left of her on this World is a sooty, gray outline of a thing with horns.

 

 

It's permanently plastered to the wall she had originally spawned from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 8th, 2018.
> 
> True End.


	14. I Told You So

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day later...We find out everything.

**The Ninth Day**

 

I knew it.

 

I knew it was all going to go to heck the minute I saw that wall phase out!

 

Thank _God_ they were able to defend against...

 

But how did they do that?

 

I don’t think...anyone else has been able to do this...

 

 

“So  _that’s_ what was going on!!”

 

Envy shot me a curious look.

 

I bet he would’ve asked me what was up if he hadn’t been a little preoccupied with the piece of cake I’d snitched from the Dining Hall.

 

Leaning over as far as I dared, I held out the computer screen for him to see:

 

 

_Our Eternity Together, Chapter 6_

 

 

“The Cursed God sent one of his Season 3 lieutenants after us!”

 

He swallowed, and then spoke:

 

“And it was obviously one of the witches from the show we watched...I don’t remember her name”.

 

“Me neither”.

 

I did a quick search.

 

“Belle’s the oldest one with black hair?”

 

Envy placed the biodegradable pie-plate in my trash bucket.

 

“If that’s what it says...I don’t remember which one’s which”.

 

Funny...this whole time, I’d thought she was the blonde one.

 

 

“Did she really have to put us through the wringer on _exam week!?”_

 

“Makes sense to me...attack us at our most vulnerable, and all that...”

 

“Except it didn’t work out for _her_ very well”.

 

I bit my lip.

 

“I feel kinda bad that we blasted her into oblivion...But she would’ve killed us otherwise, so...I shouldn’t”.

 

Envy shook his head and smiled.

 

“I’m not surprised in the least. I, too, carry some guilt towards what happened...”

 

That was the last thing I expected him to say.

 

“You do?”

 

“Yes".

 

 

But before he could elaborate further-

 

 

“You should seriously keep this door locked”.

 

 

I almost fell off the bed.

 

The door had swung open so suddenly...

 

Envy’s hands clenched into fists, and a green light started to emanate from them.

 

“Wait, wait! It’s me, Joey!!”

 

The newcomer turned to look at me, a black jacket and pants replacing his cream Season 3 garb.

 

“If you’re involved in this, then you _must_ know me...”

 

“Yeah”, I said slowly “I do...”

 

Sighing, he began to speak: 

 

"There's no good way to tell you any of this, but...I've been your shadow during the entirety of the Third Wave".

 

He pointed to Lisa.

 

“I’ve been using this plant to keep an ear on you ever since I let your mom in during the Alice portion of the Cursed God’s evil plan”.

 

He couldn’t quite keep eye contact with me.

 

“I’ve also been watching you since then, as well. And while I’m at it, I may as well tell you that I tracked you to your grandparent’s house in case that witch made a move there”.

 

 

My breath caught.

 

 

“You saw that!?”

 

“Yeah”.

 

“Well that’s not creepy at all!”

 

 

Vines sprouted from my plant, and threatened to close around the Savant with their razor-sharp teeth.

 

“Hey”.

 

He stepped back.

 

“I’m not going to hurt you”.

 

Envy’s green eyes blazed.

 

“Do you honestly expect us to believe that!? I saw what you did-!”

 

“ _I know!!”_

 

I jumped as his shout reverberated throughout the room.

 

“I _know_ how many lives I’ve destroyed through my own selfishness!!”

 

.

 

.

 

.

 

“At least let me try to make it right for _someone_ ”.

 

 

The wind chill was _bitterly_ cold.

 

I held my hands up to my face, and breathed on them.

 

They didn’t get any warmer.

 

“Remind me why we’re out here again?”

 

After Joey’s admission, there had been a beat of silence.

 

Then Lisa’s new appendages had disintegrated into nothing, and Envy had given him the most terrifying _fine, I’ll let you off the hook **for now**_ glare I had ever seen in my life.

 

I was glad that he hadn’t hurt the guy, but the tension between them had yet to be dissolved, and I worried that one or the other might snap into conflict at any minute.

 

“He told me he was going to be here soon”.

 

“ _Who_ did?”

 

On cue, the sound of crunching footsteps approached our ears.

 

“Hey, you got her!”

 

A man in a familiar checkered suit and red tie strode out from around the corner of the building.

 

Joey smiled weakly.

 

“Yeah. And she didn’t hold a grudge, so...”

 

Timothy Delaghetto, formerly known as the Mobster clasped my hand, and whispered:

 

“Yeah. I didn’t think you would. Thanks for helping me convince this guy that not everybody hates him”.

 

“I can hear you!”

 

Straightening back up, he jerked a thumb in Joey’s direction.

 

“He didn’t even want to join us can you believe that? Even though I told him that the only people who were gonna kick his butt were Lele and Nikita!”

 

“And I told you that it was my fault that they all died, and that I didn’t deserve a second chance so easily!”

 

“Still didn’t stop you from keeping tabs on her like I asked you to”.

 

“I only did that because-!”

 

“Because why?”

 

Joey looked down at the ground.

 

“Because you said she was probably the only ETN author you knew who would forgive me right off the bat”.

 

“And was I right?”

 

“...”

 

He winked at me.

 

“I was totally right-“

 

“Let’s just get this done”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How do you guys feel about it?


	15. Through The Portal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time to leave this world behind.

Joey dug around in his pocket, and produced a long, black cloak.

 

“Here”.

 

I took it, and draped it over me.

 

“Thank you!”

 

He then began to walk away.

 

“Hey, man where you going?”

 

Tim had re-clasped my hand, and was now preparing to lead me off to...well, to somewhere safe, I hoped.

 

Joey had been pretty vague about what was going to happen next, just that we ‘needed to meet someone as soon as possible’.

 

“You promised to come back with me this time, remember?”

 

He stopped walking.

 

“I know I did, but...”

 

He reached into his _other_ pocket, and withdrew a glowing, blue crystal.

 

“I have to see Daniel. He’s the only one I can trust with this, and...”

 

He turned back toward us with tears in his eyes.

 

“I want to see him one last time before everything caves in us”.

 

 

Man...

 

Hearing that...

 

Makes me wish I’d stopped by Chia’s place, told her how much I loved her before I go back under again for good.

 

“Okay”.

 

 

“You ready for this?”

 

“Um, yeah”.

 

Truth be told, I was a little nervous.

 

But I, no.

 

_We_

 

...Had come _way_ too far to back down now.

 

“Do you know where he’s taking us?”

 

“ _No”_ , I whispered “ _But he’s on our side, so..._ ”

 

“It should be fine”.

 

 

“You got an imaginary friend hidden under there, or something?”

 

He meant it as a joke.

 

I think...

 

“...Yeah”.

 

“Cool”.

 

We walked back around the building to whence this man had come.

 

He seemed a bit too...easygoing for my liking, but  _she_ trusted him, so...

 

I guess...I’ll just have to go along with it for now.

 

 

It was a portal.

 

An honest-to-goodness _portal_ made of swirling rainbow light!

 

“Normally, I would say _ladies first_ here, but I think I’m getting a death glare”.

 

I snuck a glance at Envy.

 

" _Don’t do that! That’s really scary!!_ ”

 

 

_How in the-!?_

 

_No one_ could see me.

 

So how was it possible that this...person...carried the smallest inkling that I was there?

 

 

Tim stepped through, first.

 

He disappeared from view in the span of a few seconds.

 

 

Then it was my turn.

 

I looked back for an instant, trying to mentally take a picture of as much of this place as I could just in case I never returned.

 

"Here we go..."

 

 

I saw her vanish into its bright recesses, and hurried to follow.

 

But I still had serious reservations...

 

 

The gorgeous rainbow filled my eyes, and I felt Envy hastily clasp my _other_ hand before it blew up in my face as a great, white flash-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dec. 9th, 2018.
> 
> End.


	16. An Unexpected Hitch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They can fix me. They really can!

Black spots danced in my vision.

 

“Ugh...”

 

I heard Envy’s disgusted voice behind me and knew that the same thing had happened to him.

 

“Yeah, that rainbow stuff can be a doozy if you ain’t prepared for it...”

 

“ _Now_ you tell us”.

 

Fortunately, our blindness didn’t take long to clear up.

 

In the span of a couple minutes, the hazy outline of a brick wall appeared.

 

Withdrawing a chrome stick from his breast pocket, our guide waved it over the unyielding surface, strange symbols magically appearing over the red stone wherever it went.

 

Holding up a finger as if to say _Wait for it..._

 

He stopped.

 

And the solid structure neatly split in two.

 

One half opened inward, and the former Mobster ushered us forward, eyebrows raised.

 

_Cool, right?_

 

“Tim!! You’re back!”

 

A copper-haired woman in a black dress rushed out of the shadows to greet him.

 

 

_Andrea Brooks._

 

 

 “Yup! And I brought friends...”

 

He waved me (and, by extension, Envy) forward.

 

“At least, I _think_ there’s more than one of us, here”.

 

The once-Fixer gave him a mystified smile.

 

“’More than one of us’?”

 

“I’m kinda banking on the theory that this kid can talk to ghosts...”

 

 

At the bottom of a series of stairs, the tunnel opened into a large laboratory.

 

 

As the four of us entered, we were instantly swarmed by a handful of people.

 

_Alison._

 

_Calliope._

 

_Matt, Rosanna, and Safiya._

 

_Justine Ezarik._

 

 

“You brought her?”

 

“We need to get her into the chamber, now!”

 

“Okay...okay!”

 

“She’s got the cloak on. Good-“

 

“Who’s on standby?”

 

“Be careful!! We _still_ don’t know how far her illness has progressed-!!”

 

 

Tim raised his hands as they all began to talk at once.

 

“Guys, guys!

 

Calm down!! She’s here safe, although admittedly (probably) not sound...”.

 

 

“He  _does_ enjoy making assumptions, doesn’t he?”

 

_Should I reply to that?_

I didn’t know.

 

 

What if they misread the situation completely, and mistook him for a servant of the Cursed God?

 

 

“The kid might freak out if you keep raising the volume like this”.

 

At that, the voices silenced.

 

“...I’ll go prep the detox chamber”.

 

Justine vanished through one of the chamber’s many doorways, Andrea right on her heels.

 

“Hold on a sec! You only know part of how it works-!”

 

 

“...Welp, you heard her”, Matt said “Everybody put on your protective gear!”

 

In record time, the four remaining...agents? Operatives? I didn’t know _what_ they were, slid on white lab coats, and clear, plastic goggles.

 

Even Alison and Calliope.

 

 

Tim’s hand squeezed mine.

 

“Hey, when you get the okay from Andrea, you gotta enter that bad boy as soon as I whip this baby off of you”.

 

He tilted his head to indicate my cloak.

 

I had thought it was just something to wear so I wouldn’t freeze, but...

 

Maybe there was more to it than that?

 

“Ready? 3...2...1...”

 

“Now!”

 

At Andrea’s shout, the heavy fabric was lifted away, and I raced through the gaping doorway.

 

 

_Wh-!?_

 

 

I had no idea she could run that fast.

 

I had to practically sprint to keep up with her!

 

 

I heard a _slam!_ as it was shut, and an ominous _click!_ as she fastened the lock.

 

“Nearly tread on my toes, why don’t you?” Envy complained.

 

“Sorry”.

 

Tim’s waving caught my attention through the glass window.

 

“So, I am _no_ expert on this stuff whatsoever but...my BFF back there told me to tell you that you’re supposed those gloves on hanging on the wall”.

 

I turned around, wondering what he was talking about.

 

Sure enough, there they were.

 

 

“I’m getting a bad feeling about this...”

 

Envy rubbed his arms, and shuddered.

 

 

“This thing is usually meant to kill the nasties inside your ears, but, in your case, it’s being used to hopefully shut out the hypno-whatsits floating around in your brain”.

 

He pointed at himself, and then added:

 

“We’ve all got to look like stereotypical scientists so that the detox won’t do wonderfully horrible things to us non-hypno-affected people, but all _your_ gonna need is those gloves. Just in case you were like _What? Now I gotta change **my** outfit too? _and all that jazz”.

 

 

_Thanks for the explanation._

I picked up the set of gloves, and was about to put them on when I noticed something...worrying.

 

 

Envy was looking rather green for the first time in days.

 

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

 

...What could I say to her?

 

 

Curing the hypnosis through physically removing it from her head would set her free beyond a shadow of a doubt...

 

 

But.

 

It would also kill the flowers keeping me tied to this dimension since there would be no more use for them.

 

Ergo...

 

I would become trapped again.

 

 

_Forever_ this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day ???, 2018.


	17. All Strapped In And Ready To Roll

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just hang in there...for a little while longer.

“It’s nothing...”

 

He smiled, but...

 

“Just a bit nervous about what’s to come”.

 

It felt like a lie.

 

 

“Okay...”

 

 

I slid one glove on.

 

Then the other.

 

Because I didn't know what else to do...

 

 

Andrea stepped over to a control panel and began to press several buttons.

 

The fabric covering my fingertips started to vibrate.

 

_Huh? What’s this?_

The next second, I was being yanked backwards!

 

“Whoa-!”

 

“Is that supposed to happen!?”

 

“I don’t know!”

 

My hands hit the metal palms-down.

 

I tried to move them away, but couldn’t...

 

 

_Getting a little freaked out now, I’m not going to lie..._

 

“It’s gonna be fine!” Tim reassured me.

 

“Whoever’s on the other end of the Alice virus is gonna want you to plug your ears, and block the killing waves out, so...yeah”.

 

 

_Plug my ears?_

 

The Fixer finished up her...whatever she was doing over there, and turned to look at me.

 

“There’s no good way to dance around this, so I’m just going to say it outright: this is gonna hurt”.

 

I blinked.

 

“What!?”

 

It took me a second to realize that Envy and I had said it at the same time.

 

“-But it won’t be for very long, I promise!”

 

She held up one finger.

 

“Thirty seconds, tops”.

 

Her other hand hovered over a button larger than all the rest.

 

“You ready?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking, and thinking, but I don't know how to fix this!
> 
> (On a sidenote: Merry Christmas everybody!! How on earth did it get here so fast!?)


	18. Ready Or Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which I remember something far too late.

How are you supposed to tell someone that they _shouldn’t_ heal themselves?

 

 

...

 

 

I _don’t_ want to disappear.

 

 

I _don’t_.

 

 

...

 

 

But...I can’t tell her that!

 

 

How selfish would I have to be to tell her that...?

 

 

...

 

 

...Whether I choose to say anything or not, I’m running out of time.

 

 

 

_You ready?_

 

I was.

 

 

...Well actually, I wasn’t, but it had to be done.

 

 

This ‘killing waves’ thing...

 

 

So I couldn’t very well back out now.

 

 

“Ready-“

 

_Oh-_

 

Am I _stupid!?_

 

“Envy, what’s gonna happen to your flowers!?”

 

 

I’m _so_ stupid!!

 

 

I was _not_ prepared for her to ask that out of the blue.

 

“W-well, I...” I swallowed hard “I would assume that...they would _die_...”

 

 

She looked so horrified-

 

 

My eyes searched for the control panel, and found Andrea’s finger pressing down-

 

 

“U-um! Ms. Brooks-!!”

 

_Click!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately, this happens in reality far too often for my liking.


	19. Beginning Of The End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It begins.

SCREEE-

 

Envy winced as the high-pitched whine echoed in the small space.

 

 His hands started to migrate toward his elfin ears, and I found myself instinctually trying to do the same thing.

 

My fingers were straining against their fabric confines, but it was no good.

 

Attempting to shut out the irritating noise was like intentionally slamming my palms against a brick wall.

 

Painful, and not worth the effort.

 

 

“Ms. Brooks!”

 

I could hear a faint whispering at the back of my mind.

 

But I couldn’t make out the words.

 

“You have to _stop_ -!!”

 

 

A slow, burning ache began to crawl up my arms.

 

 

Her sleeves had slipped when she’d been pushed up against the wall, exposing my handiwork to anyone with acute powers of observation.

 

“You doing okay?”

 

She shot a worried look my way, and yelled:

 

“Yeah, but-!!”

 

“Awesome”.

 

She was button-mashing, again.

 

“You’re almost out of the woods, I just have to up the frequency a little more”.

 

“ _Andrea Brooks-!!_ ”

 

SCR- _EEEEEEEE-_

_It hurts._

_EEEEEEEE-_

_It **really** hurts!_

My vision was steadily warping as the noise increased in strength.

 

I couldn’t keep my eyes open-

 

_No._

_It couldn’t be._

 

The petals...

 

One had flaked off as I watched.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so not ready for this.


	20. Fatal Flaw

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I hate this. I hate this!

It felt like my ears were _bleeding_.

 

“Ouch _...Ouch-”_

 

_How long until this thing stops!?_

 

 

Panicked, I began to pull on the gloves.

 

The usual rosy-pink of the blossoms embedded in my veins was darkening to a burnt-red.

 

If I squinted, I could _just_ make out the waves of sound ripping into their roots.

 

_Oh nonono-_

 

As I watched, one petal tore free.

 

It floated on the air for a split-second, and then crumbled to dust.

 

 

And the voices became that much louder.

 

 

From there, things only got worse.

 

Petals were dropping off by the dozens, now...

 

I was starting to go transparent, and I couldn’t even feel my hands pressed against my ears.

 

To say I was terrified would have been an understatement.

 

If this kept up, I would be gone within seconds-

 

 

**_Join us Alice._ **

 

**_Join us Alice._ **

 

**_Join us Alice._ **

****

**COVER YOUR EARS**

The old madness had grown with each loss of a bloom.

 

_The Mad Hatter, The Dorrat, The Mock Turtle, The Queen..._

I could see their faces again.

 

See the psychedelic-swirl of their nonsense world gradually take over mine-

 

_If there’s one good thing about being stuck like this, it’s that I can’t do what they want anymore._

By chance, I happened to look over at my accidental partner.

 

I almost screamed.

_I didn’t see him anywhere._

_“Envy!?”_

 

It’s an indescribably  _awful_ feeling to look down at yourself, and see absolutely _nothing._

 

The detox chamber was growing darker, just like it had the very first time this had happened.

 

I could already sense the tendrils waiting to burst to life beneath my flesh-

 

_I can’t stop this._

 

**_I’m going to vanish, and that will be-_ **

 

**_That will be it._ **

 

All that was left to destroy.

 

Were the remnants of roots in my blood.

 

They ripped out of my skin and spouted crimson streams into the air...

 

But I barely felt a thing.

 

I was too numb with the knowledge that I’d utterly ruined everything at the last minute.

 

_...Why do I always do this._

 

_I go through **so** much with whatever it is I’m doing..._

 

_And then I crush all my efforts into the ground._

Even worse...

 

_It wasn’t even schoolwork-related._

 

_It was my first real, high-stakes partnership._

 

_And I **blew it**._

 

_Why am I always **so stupid**?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First I'm over-confident, then I'm unreliable! ):


	21. Rallying

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A ray of hope is recovered.

If there was a way to fix this...

 

I had no clue what it was.

 

 

Yet.

 

 

I had to try...didn’t I?

 

I couldn’t just let things lie the way they were now...

 

 

_Envy has my light._

 

An eternity must have passed between then and the moment that thought appeared in my brain.

 

 

_If he has my light..._

 

_Does that mean that I can use his plants?_

 

 

This whole bunker was underground.

 

Thus, it was a mine field of dormant vegetation just waiting to happen.

 

 

With that in mind, I stopped fighting the gloves.

 

And started focusing all of my strength on the wall instead.

_C’mon...C’mon...!_

 

A gentle warmth bloomed in my chest.

 

_Is this what plant magic feels like?_

 

_I don't know..._

 

Compared to the usual barely-contained fire that raged in there on a daily basis, I figured it was a safe bet.

 

 

The next thing to do was to see whether or not I could now pull them free.

 

R-R-R- _RRip!_

 

One  _thumb_ came away.

 

 

From then on...it was _painfully_ slow going.

 

Each millisecond that passed by, the voices in my ears, and visions in my head got...quieter.

 

Less vivid than they were before.

 

And that was great.

 

 

But I wasn't going to sacrifice my friend for it.

 

 

R-R-R- _RRip!_

 

 

Next was my pointer finger.

 

Then the middle one.

 

Then my ring...

 

My pinkie was the last to go.

 

 

_Finally!_

 

 

My right hand tore away from the wall, a misshapen growth of vines and leaves stuck to the palm...

 

_Hold on Envy!_

 

_I've got one more to go, and **then...**_

 

You'll be home-free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Those aren't vines...


	22. Final

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I've almost got you...I'm almost there...!

The Alice insanity had drastically decreased in intensity.

 

All I could hear of it now was one, measly whisper:

 

 

_Alice_

 

 

_Alice_

 

 

An easy thing to ignore.

 

 

As for the glove-tearing process...

 

_That_ was taking an eternity.

 

 

_Okay._

_I’ve got my thumb..._

_Now my pointer..._

_The middle one..._

_My ring finger..._

_And my pinkie!_

 

**_Yes!!_ **

****

 

With one final, _rip!_ my hands were freed!!!

 

 

I remembered lunging halfway across the chamber and throwing my arms around the empty space.

 

 

_I’m sorry._

_I’m so, **so** sorry-!_

 

_I_ remembered seeing the last of the bunker fade to black.

 

And that’s how I stayed...for an unbearably long time.

 

Just...

 

_Hovering_ , there...

 

Caught between this reality, and the empty darkness beneath me.

 

When color and sound returned to, I saw that there was only one flower left, dangling from a broken stalk.

 

After that...I’ve really got nothing.

 

Tim ran in there and got me out, and then the talking over each other happened again, something about ‘ _broken_ ’, and ‘ _exposed wires_ ’, and ‘ _just as strong as the rumors’_...

 

Anyway, I ended up in a room.

 

The way there must have gone by in a blur, and, you know something?

 

I don’t think I let go of Envy once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge shout-out to Teeterama for sticking with this story all the way to the end, even though I must've given you a continuous heart attack! Thank you so much, and stay tuned!!


	23. Enter Mystic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No, it's not over yet. Not by a long shot...

“What do you think's going on out there?”

 

 

By this time, we’d been here for a week.

 

 

Things had been calm and uneventful for the first time in  _days_.

 

 

Until now, that is...

 

As we sat there, listening, various people sprinted past the crack in our door shouting over each other, making arrangements for something, and just...generally rushing around in circles like an entire flock of chickens with their heads cut off.

 

It was quite...something.

 

 

“If I had to guess...I would say that they've either been attacked, or...”

 

 

Someone in an emerald coat, and saffron beanie ran by in the opposite direction:

 

 

 

“Oohh...I’m gonna be late for **ETNMystic** -! _!_ ”

 

 

 

Alice almost fell off the bed.

 

“No way...

 

 

_She’s_ here too!?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story continues in 'Don't Think I'll Leave You Behind', Part 2.

**Author's Note:**

> Nov. 30th, Fri.
> 
> End.


End file.
